The invention relates to a pharmaceutical composition intended for the treatment or prophylaxis of infections induced by the hepatitis C virus (HCV).
The hepatitis C virus (HCV) is the agent responsible for the majority of hepatitis infections of the non-A non-B type. The seroprevalence of HCV infections varies between 0.3 and 1.5% in the world population, possibly reaching 18% in some developing countries. Hundreds of millions of people are thus thought to be infected worldwide. Nine types and thirty subtypes of HCV have been described. The subtypes may be associated with a defined geographical distribution, type 1b being the most widespread worldwide. The progression to the chronic form occurs in 50% of cases, about 5 years after the primary infection. Persistent Chronic Hepatitis which is asymptomatic, but which exhibits a high circulating virus titer, is first observed, then Active Chronic Hepatitis becomes established. Twenty percent of chronic hepatites progress to sclerosis of the liver within about ten years. Hepatocarcinoma may develop in the cirrhotic liver.
The hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a positive single-stranded RNA virus. On the basis of structural resemblance, HCV has been linked to the flavivirus and pestivirus families.